The Slumber Party Massacre Collection DVDReview

When it comes to exploitation and inventive B-movie cheese, nobody does it better than Roger Corman. And what better example of his gory, flesh-filled excess than the Slumber Party Massacre franchise -- a series that's not only inspired at least one spin-off franchise (Cheerleader Massacre), but dozens of other "massacre" knock-offs (many either produced or distributed by Roger Corman).

Ironically, even though the Slumber Party Massacre series has long been considered a franchise filled with near X-rated sex and tantalizing babes, it's actually quite a bit different than the stigma that surrounds it. In fact, all three films barely have more than a half dozen nude scenes between them. And they're all written, directed and produced by females (the original was even initially scripted by feminist author Rita Mae Brown).

In actuality, the original Slumber Party Massacre is quite inventive. The film is quite ahead of its time, often layering subtle commentary and feminist humor throughout the exploitative beats (for example, the men do the silly things women tend to do in most generic slashers). Even better, there's gore galore, clever kills and a whacked-out, hilariously silly bad guy billed the "driller killer." It's far from a classic, but Slumber Party Massacre deserves the cult status it's acquired over the years.

Where the first feature was subtle and sleazy, the second film is off-the-wall and completely unhinged, mixing bizarre comedy with Nightmare on Elm Street-inspired thrills. It's also a musical of sorts. This time the "driller killer" isn't some random nutjob, but a 50's greaser-type with a drill that's built into a wicked electric guitar. The film throws just about every silly gag it can at the audience and the result is a bizarre concoction of wickedly strange, surreal humor and slasher cliches, all seemingly woven with obvious intentions. The film works, thanks to a surprisingly fun cast, but its best not to take things too seriously and just enjoy the film for what it is -- a brilliantly madcap slasher send-up.

Then there's the third, and technically final, chapter -- by far the worst film in the series. Removing the zesty insanity and off-the-wall humor of the second film, and downplaying the subtle pro-feminist undertones of the first to nonexistence, Slumber Party Massacre III plays like a generic whodunit slasher complete with bad performances, ridiculous contrivances, subplots that go nowhere, and awful dialogue. The kills are uninspired. The thrills are tiresome. And the twists are predictable. In short, there's little about the third film worth watching, but it does garner a few unintentional laughs in the first half.

Again, continuing the trend of Shout! Factory's other Roger Corman releases, this two-disc set comes loaded with newly remastered transfers and loads of extras including commentary tracks, trailers, posters and more.

Sadly, the transfers are pretty scratchy and each film looks worse than the next (the third film gets a downright awful unremastered full-frame presentation). The prints exhibit a heavy grain structure with numerous scratches, blemishes and white and black specks gumming up the works. The equally scratchy, crackle-filled stereo/mono mixes provided for each film leaves much to be desired as well.

Extras, at least, make up for the faults of the A/V presentation. Fans can bite into three somewhat informative commentary tracks -- one for each film. There are a few dry spots, but on the whole, the tracks are pretty amusing, especially considering the zany source material. Even better, there's a surprisingly fun three-part documentary that explores all three features. While the documentary is a bit light on participating cast and crew, it's a lot of fun to watch. Rounding out the two-disc set, there's a collection of trailers and a stills gallery for each film featuring production stills and poster artwork.

It's not high art, that much is certain, but the original Slumber Party Massacre is a fun, gory good ride riddled with scares, flesh and humor. The sequels aren't quite as great, but the second outing certainly has its wacky moments. Admittedly, this set is worth it just for the first film. Having the sequels and the original all in one place is just an added bonus. If only Shout! would have given fans a Blu-ray release as well.